How to Make Performance Management Easy

Performance Management is a vast term encompassing
activities that have an objective to collectively work to enhance the
performance of an employee. And the most vital aspect of Performance Management
is the evaluation of the work, which an employee is made to perform.

One of the trickiest requirements of the job profiles of
Managers is to regularly review and communicate the Performance of the
reportees to them. Yes- it is tricky- because if you have to communicate the
good points, it is usually done more willingly, than when you have to convey
the shortcomings. The Manager tends to delay the process, trying to look for
the “right time” to face the reportee, and even when he does come face to face,
is he able to communicate in whole?

A lot of doubts have surfaced over the years, questioning
whether or not yearly assessments are the right way to go about, and whether or
not the current system of performance management is effective. Some companies
have even done away with written systems of performance assessment, and are
shifting their focus more towards informal and regular meetings to enhance
communication between the Supervisor and his team members.

While the essence of Performance Assessment lies in
effective interaction between the assesse and the assessor, there are
nevertheless some important aspects that need consideration. These
considerations come from putting the larger interest of the Organization in
prospective, and not take Performance Assessment as a one off administrative
procedure.

And the most important aspect lies in preparedness by the
Supervisor. This preparedness is not limited to being ready for the one-to-one
at the end of a period, or on conclusion of the task. It involves high levels
of clarity of thought on part of the Supervisor, at all stages of execution of
the job, or job responsibilities through a period.

The following points can make understand this better:

1.Begin
with chalking out your expectations: Whether it is at the beginning of a new
financial year, or the beginning of a new project, it is extremely important
for the team members to clearly understand what exactly, according to the Supervisor,
is expected out of them. For this, the Supervisor should analyze and be
eloquent in benchmarking the output levels- whether they are performance based
or whether behavior based. The employees should have a clear understanding of
what is work well done. The Manager/ Supervisor should lucidly explain and
justify why his demands are such, for which it is extremely important for him
to have clear thought-out, specific and achievable goals. Once the expectations
are laid, it is easy for the employee and for the Manager to keep a tab on the
progress, and work on shortcomings wherever necessary.

2.Allocate
job as per Competency: It goes without saying that if the competency is
lacking, performance will be poor. But then, in the interest of your
Organization- why wait for poor performance to surface? Define and delegate a
job as per the capabilities of the employee. Once the competency is defined, it
is then important to move ahead with employee as he goes about his
responsibilities, guiding him at intervals so that he proceeds in the right
direction.

3.Understand
and provide the necessary support system: This needs to be done at the
beginning, and even along the way. Your employee should get the feeling that
you are there to help him achieve the necessary targets, rather than just make
comments over the execution. The help could be in the form of an additional hand,
or perhaps pushing any interdepartmental dependency, or even providing
technical support, if required. Your endeavor will find a positive breakthrough
in your leadership skills, and ease the way for you to voice critical comments
to your employees to better their performance.

4.Set
measurable milestones- it helps in a fair assessment of performance by the
employee himself. This perhaps is one of the more complicated needs, because it
requires extensive thinking on the part of the Supervisor. But keeping vague
milestones like- work half done, or partly done can create confusion in the
minds of both the Supervisor and the employee. But specific milestones like-
achieving “7 outlined points out of 12” gives a fair sense of direction to the
employee and is a good pointer for the Supervisor to make further suggestions
for improvement.

In my experience, a Supervisor who has the clarity of
thought is constantly looked up for regular guidance. And once the preparedness
of the Supervisor is thorough, it goes without saying that any amount of his
interaction with the employee or team member will only give fruitful results.
Such a Supervisor need not be caught in the administrative system of
Performance Assessment. And neither will he ever have to worry about how he can
give the unpleasant news to an employee; he makes the best Performance
Assessor- at all times!